View source for I was at that time a fool, but I opined like this. And I accepted him as my spiritual master immediately. Not officially, but in my heart. That was in 1922

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{{terms|"I was at that time a fool, but I opined like this. And I accepted him as my spiritual master immediately. Not officially, but in my heart. That was in 1922"}}
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[[Category:I Was (Prabhupada)]]
[[Category:At That Time]]
[[Category:Remaining a Fool Before a Spiritual Master]]
[[Category:My Opinion (Prabhupada)]]
[[Category:I Accept (Prabhupada)]]
[[Category:Bhaktisiddhanta]]
[[Category:My Spiritual Master (Bhaktisiddhanta)]]
[[Category:Immediately]]
[[Category:Official]]
[[Category:My Heart (Prabhupada)]]
[[Category:That Is]]
[[Category:Date 1922]]
[[Category:Prabhupada Speaks - Lectures, 1966 - 1977]]
[[Category:Prabhupada Speaks - Lectures, 1973]]
[[Category:Prabhupada Speaks - Lectures, Festival]]
[[Category:Prabhupada Speaks - in USA, Los Angeles]]
[[Category:Prabhupada Speaks - His Life]]
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<div id="Lectures" class="section" sec_index="4" parent="compilation" text="Lectures"><h2>Lectures</h2>
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<div id="Festival_Lectures" class="sub_section" sec_index="6" parent="Lectures" text="Festival Lectures"><h3>Festival Lectures</h3>
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<div id="HisDivineGraceSrilaBhaktisiddhantaSarasvatiGosvamiPrabhupadasDisappearanceDayLectureLosAngelesDecember131973_0" class="quote" parent="Festival_Lectures" book="Lec" index="35" link="His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Disappearance Day, Lecture -- Los Angeles, December 13, 1973" link_text="His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Disappearance Day, Lecture -- Los Angeles, December 13, 1973">
<div class="heading">I was at that time a fool, but I opined like this. And I accepted him as my spiritual master immediately. Not officially, but in my heart. That was in 1922.
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<mp3player>https://vanipedia.s3.amazonaws.com/clip/731213DB-LOS_ANGELES_clip4.mp3</mp3player>
<span class="link">[[Vanisource:His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Disappearance Day, Lecture -- Los Angeles, December 13, 1973|His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Disappearance Day, Lecture -- Los Angeles, December 13, 1973]]: </span><div class="text"><p style="display: inline;">
Prabhupāda: So anyway, it was Kṛṣṇa's grace. I would not go, but their point of view was that unless I certified that ''sādhu'', Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, he'll not be accepted. Therefore he dragged me. So I went to see Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura on that day. On the first meeting, just we offer our obeisances. It is the practice. So immediately he began his talking that "You are all educated young men. Why don't you take up Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's cult and preach all over the English-knowing public? Why don't you take up this matter?" So I argued with him in so many . . . at that time I was Nationalist. So I told that "Who will accept our message? We are dependent nation. Nobody will care." In this way, in my own way, in these younger days . . . but we belonged to the Vaiṣṇava family, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Nityānanda, Rādhā-Govinda. That is our worshipable duty . . . er, worshipable Deity. So I was very glad that, "Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa cult, Caitanya Mahāprabhu's . . . this ''sādhu'' is trying to preach. It is very nice."

So at that time we had some talks, and of course I was defeated by his argument, my argument. (laughter) And then, when we came out, we were offered ''prasādam'', very nice treatment, the Gauḍīya Maṭha. And when I came out on the street, this my friend asked me, "What is your opinion of this ''sādhu''?" Then I said that, "Here is the right person who has taken up Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's message, and now it will be distributed."

Devotees: ''Jaya!''

Prabhupāda: So I was at that time a fool, but I opined like this. And I accepted him as my spiritual master immediately. Not officially, but in my heart. That was in 1922. Then, in 1923, I left Calcutta on my business tour, and I made my headquarter at Allahabad. Allahabad is about five hundred miles from Calcutta. So I was thinking that "I met a very nice saintly person." That was my thinking always. So in this way, in 1928, there was a Kumbha-melā. At that time, these Gauḍīya Maṭha people came to Allahabad to establish a center there, and somebody else said, somebody informed them that, "You go to that Prayag Pharmacy." My drug shop was named as Prayag Pharmacy. My name was also there. "You go and see Abhay Babu. He is religiously . . . he will help you." These Gauḍīya Maṭha people, they came to see me. So, "Sir, we have come to you. We have heard your good name. So we want to start a temple here. Please try to help us." So because I was thinking of these Gauḍīya Maṭha people that, "I met a very nice, saintly persons," then as soon as I saw them, I was very much engladdened: "Oh, here are these persons. They have come again."

So in this way, gradually, I became attached to these Gauḍīya Maṭha activities, and by the grace of Kṛṣṇa, my business also was not going very well. (laughter) (laughs) Yes. Kṛṣṇa says, ''yasyāham anughṛṇāmi hariṣye tad-dhanaṁ śanaiḥ'' ([[vanisource:SB 10.88.8|SB 10.88.8]]), means if somebody wants to be actually devotee of Kṛṣṇa, at the same time keeps his material attachment, then Kṛṣṇa's business is He takes away everything material, so that cent percent he becomes, I mean to say, dependent on Kṛṣṇa. So that actually happened to my life. I was obliged to come to this movement to take up this very seriously. And I was dreaming that, "Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura is calling me, 'Please come out with me!' " (break) So I was sometimes horrified, "Oh, what is this? I have give up my family life? Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura is calling me? I have to take ''sannyāsa''?" Oh, I was horrified. But I saw several times, calling me. So anyway, it is by his grace I was forced to give up my family life and so-called business life. And he brought me some way or other in preaching his gospel.

So this is a memorable day. What he desired, I am trying little bit, and you are all helping me. So I have to thank you more. You are actually representative of my Guru Mahārāja (starts to cry) . . . because you are helping me in executing the order of my Guru Mahārāja. Thank you very much.

Devotees: ''Jaya'' . . . all glories to you Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa.